Few figures in Esan music history have had the cultural influence and staying power of John Okoduwa, popularly known as Godly Showpromoter. Widely regarded as one of the pioneers of Obito Highlife music, the veteran musician and Chief Ozemire of Uromi Kingdom has spent decades shaping a sound that blended Esan traditional rhythms with modern Highlife instrumentation, creating a genre that became deeply associated with celebrations, burials, and social gatherings across Esanland.
Born in 1948 into the family of Okoduwa Eboh from Idunmhu Ague Afandion in Uromi, Edo State, Godly Showpromoter’s journey into music began after watching legendary musician Sir Victor Uwaifo perform at Wisdom Hotel in Urom. The performance left a lasting impression on him and ignited his passion for music. Determined to pursue the craft, he later travelled to Benin City, where he joined Sir Victor Uwaifo’s band and learned the discipline, stagecraft, and originality that would later define his own musical career.
Drawing inspiration from Highlife legends such as Rex Lawson, Ebenezer Obey, I.K. Dairo, Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe, and Sir Victor Uwaifo himself, Godly Showpromoter gradually developed a unique musical identity rooted in Esan culture. At a time when musicians from Benin, the Eastern region, and other parts of Nigeria dominated social events in Esanland, he saw the need to modernize indigenous Esan sounds such as Asonogun, Ojeke, and Umahenbhonlen by Umobuarie Igberaese, Amojo, Ogenete, Kesi, Abolo Okodute and the rest and uses instruments like guitars, saxophones, drums, and amplifiers.
